Conversation with a late night security guard that shifted my whole view on solitude

I was wandering around a 24 hour Walmart around 2 AM last Tuesday, just killing time, and I ended up talking to this older security guard near the frozen foods. He said something about how most people fill every quiet moment with noise because they're scared what they'll hear in the silence. I laughed it off but then he told me he's been working nights for 12 years and learned to actually listen to the building settle, like the creaks and the hum of the freezers. It hit me different because I've been staying up late doomscrolling or watching random videos just to avoid being alone with my thoughts. He didn't say it in a preachy way, just matter of fact like he was talking about the weather. Made me wonder if I've been missing something by always having earbuds in or a screen on. Has anyone else had a random late night chat that made you rethink your own habits like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

roberts9527d ago

my buddy told me about a time he was buying taquitos at 3am and this gas station clerk just goes "you know, the hum of the cooler is the only thing that ever tells the truth"... he said it was so weird but now he can't sit in a quiet room without zoning out and listening to everything around him

jake98627d ago

Oh man, taquito guy sounds like a philosopher in training. I tried to get deep with the ice machine at my local gas station once but all it gave me was a bag of half-melted cubes. Probably for the best, I can barely handle my own thoughts let alone whatever wisdom a freezer is dropping on me.

jake98627d ago

So did this security guy also teach you how to hear the building's secrets or was that just for @roberts95's taquito guy? (Hilarious bit by the way, I bet that clerk also tells people the ice machine is a philosopher). Honestly though, I feel like every deep conversation you have at 2am with a stranger is like 50% profound wisdom and 50% the guy just being really bored and messing with you. Still, the point about wanting to avoid the quiet is pretty real - I've definitely sat in my car for an extra ten minutes just so I don't have to walk into my silent apartment yet. Maybe we should all trade in our phones for a job as a night watchman or something, seems like the only way to get some peace these days.